As Hurricane Michael pummeled Florida, the rest of the country watched and hoped for the best. Kristopher Dumschat of Bangor knew first-hand the perils faced by those in Michael’s path.

He also knows their troubles aren’t over because the storm has passed.

Only a month ago, Dumschat rode out Hurricane Florence near Wilmington, N.C.

As he watched Hurricane Michael roll in this week, Dumschat found himself thinking about that rough time and relating to those who lost everything or were left living in primitive conditions. It wasn’t easy, so he distanced himself a bit, limiting how much news he watched about the storm.

“It was almost like reliving it, knowing exactly what those people were going through,” he said.

Dumschat found himself in the eye of Hurricane Florence when he went to help his father, who chose not to evacuate after the hurricane’s strength was downgraded before it made landfall. They were well-prepared, as Dumschat is a disaster specialist with the Lehigh Valley chapter of the American Red Cross.

But you can’t completely prepare yourself for such an experience.

“It really was just a constant roar. The house just shook from the winds,” he said. “It sounded like somebody was dumping nails on the roof.”

With the power out, it was pitch black at night. Dumschat and his father could hear the gusts coming and hear trees snapping, but they couldn’t see what was happening just feet away.

“It’s like your eyes are closed. All you can do is listen,” Dumschat recalled. “That was the single most terrifying night of my life.”

Helping his father get through the storm was his priority. Afterward, he handed out supplies he had taken with him and did what he could to help others as a representative of the Red Cross.

“For that community, that neighborhood I could get to, I just tried to take care of them as best as I could,” he told me.

He had packed Red Cross blankets, clean-up kits and comfort toys for children, figuring they would be needed. He was struck by how the whole neighborhood came together after the storm passed. People shared food, water, chainsaws and other tools and supplies. It was true southern hospitality, he said.

“It brought out the best of us,” Dumschat said. “It’s sometimes good to be reminded of that.”

His father’s home was damaged when a tree fell on it, causing some leaking. Nearby homes took harder hits.

A tree fell on a neighbor’s house, breaking a window. Dumschat said he and his father minimized the damage by plugging the hole with trash bags. He said it must have looked like a Three Stooges skit as they battled the wind and rain to get the plastic to stay up.

CONTRIBUTED / KRISTOPHER DUMSCHAT

Hurricane Florence's winds and rain battered the Wilmington, N.C., area for several days. Kristopher Dumschat of Bangor helped his father ride out the storm and then helped others in the area in his role as a Red Cross disaster specialist.

Hurricane Florence's winds and rain battered the Wilmington, N.C., area for several days. Kristopher Dumschat of Bangor helped his father ride out the storm and then helped others in the area in his role as a Red Cross disaster specialist. (CONTRIBUTED / KRISTOPHER DUMSCHAT)

When the waters rose after the storm, some homes were flooded.

“Some homes were destroyed, some were spared within a hundred feet of each other,” he said.

Dumschat said water rescue teams frequently were in the area. He doesn’t believe anyone in his father’s development died, but he’s pretty sure there were deaths not far away, based on news reports.

He stayed for about a week to help his father and the neighborhood clean up. He sympathizes with people in Florida and Georgia who are coping with Hurricane Michael’s aftermath.

“It was absolutely miserable,” he said.

Without electricity, it was too hot to sleep well. They would go to a neighbor’s house every so often to cool themselves by a fan run by a generator, or sit in his pickup and blast the air conditioning. Their meal options were limited to what they could cook (usually soup or pasta) on a propane camping stove.

“After a little bit, you kind of just lose your appetite,” he said.

There was water everywhere, making it difficult to keep your feet dry. Dumschat ran out of dry socks. There was no shortage of snakes.

After about a week without a shower, they were able to clean up using a hose — of cold water — from their neighbor’s well.

“It was pretty rough conditions,” Dumschat said. “I just couldn’t imagine those who had medical needs.”

He considered staying in the Carolinas longer to help with the Red Cross, but doubted he would have been much help because he was drained.

Other Red Cross workers from northeastern Pennsylvania still are there. So far, 81 have assisted in the Carolinas or Virginia. Peter Brown, executive director of the Lehigh-Bucks chapter, traveled to North Carolina this week.

Some of the communities that were washed out were deluged with rain again Thursday from the remnants of Hurricane Michael. Dumschat said his father’s roof hasn’t been repaired. To protect against more damage, his father gathered shingles that had blown off and did his best to reattach them before Michael’s rains came.

Dumschat wished he could have been there to help.

PAUL MUSCHICK / THE MORNING CALL

Kristopher Dumschat of Bangor is a disaster specialist with the Lehigh Valley chapter of the American Red Cross.

Kristopher Dumschat of Bangor is a disaster specialist with the Lehigh Valley chapter of the American Red Cross. (PAUL MUSCHICK / THE MORNING CALL)